Achieving it consultant objectives through client project success

Success Lies in the Eye of the Beholder: A Quantitative Analysis of the Mismatch Between Perceived and Real IT Project Management Performance

“…Project managers need to deal with IT consultant objectives and align these with their own organization and project performance criteria [29]. Pankratz and Loebbecke's study [35] suggests that aligned objectives positively contribute to the success of IT initiatives.…”

Success factors of management consulting

“…Classical applications include the employer-employee relationship, the doctor-patient relationship, the landlord-tenant relationship, the insurer-insured or the lender-borrower relationship. Thus, since management consulting projects also include a comparable case of two contracting entities, the relationship between client and consultant can likewise be categorized as a classic principal-agent relationship (Clark 1993;Luo and Liberatore 2009;Saam 2012). In this case, the client stands for the principal, whereas the consultant represents the agent.…”

“…Nevertheless, the specific dimensions Compliance with Budget and Schedule and Degree of Target Achievement we consider fundamental for a successful management project from the client's perspective, not least due to their frequent use in similar studies (Pinto and Prescott 1990;Gable 1996;Jang et al 1997;Richter and Schmidt 2006;Luo and Liberatore 2009;Liberatore and Luo 2010).…”

“…When subsequently regarding the measurement of the respective success dimensions, we operationalize Compliance with Budget and Schedule as well as Degree of Target Achievement based on Pinto and Prescott (1990), Gable (1996), Jang et al (1997), Richter and Schmidt (2006), Luo and Liberatore (2009) as well as Liberatore and Luo (2010). Altogether, their measurement involves the actual project duration, adherence to deadlines, budget and expectations as well as the final achievement of targets.…”

“…For instance, the focus of some studies lies exclusively on IT consulting projects and/or they lack a clear definition of success, engagement success or project performance (e.g. Gable 1996;Luo and Liberatore 2009). Yet, one notable work about the success factors of consulting projects is that of Appelbaum (2004).…”